The katholikon, the monastery's main church, is dedicated to the Nativity of the Theotokos — the birth of the Virgin Mary. The building is small by Western standards but typical of post-Byzantine Albanian Orthodox architecture: a single nave with a narthex, a wooden iconostasis dividing the lay congregation from the sanctuary, and a barrel-vaulted ceiling that catches the light from narrow windows.
What raises this church above similar structures across the Balkans is the painting. The Zografi brothers covered the interior in narrative scenes — the life of Christ, the Last Judgement, individual saints — with a confidence and warmth that survived the centuries of damp and the decades of communist neglect. Look up at the dome, then at the wall behind the iconostasis, and let your eyes adjust before moving on. There is more here than you can take in on a quick pass.